Fateful Encounter
by DarkGreiga
Summary: Mark and Chelsea met for the first time, but only one of them could remember. What would happen in their next fateful meeting? R&R!
1. Early Years

Hi everyone! It has been ages since I last did any fic uploadings, but I'm back! (For now) School's taking most of my time, so I rarely have a lot of time to do fanfics nowadays, but don't worry! I've got the whole this whole story done, so I only need the time to upload the chapters here.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon!

Enjoy!

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_**Harvest Moon – Fateful Encounter**_

_**Chapter 1 – Early Years**_

It was so quiet and peaceful in Mineral Town, until a crying girl broke the silence. She was a brown haired girl lost in a town she didn't recognize. She sat near one of the street lamps. Snow started to fall as it was already winter. A boy who was passing by the street noticed her.

"Hi there. Are you lost?" the boy asked. He had messy blonde hair with a blue baseball cap. The girl nodded, but still sobbing.

"Come on, I'll show you the way!" the boy extended his hand to help her back to her feet. The girl took his hand and they walked together.

Meanwhile, the girl's parents were asking the town's mayor if he has seen their daughter. They noticed that her daughter was walking along with a boy about her age not too far from where they were standing.

As soon as she saw her parents, she quickly ran over to them and hugged them tightly. They thanked the boy for finding their daughter before the three of them excuse themselves to the mayor and headed to the inn.

The next day, the boy was fishing on the beach with his father. They noticed that a ship was going to depart, but they also saw the girl from the day before along with her parents running to catch the ship before it departed.

"Hey, aren't you the girl from last night?" the boy approached which made the girl stopped running.

"Yes, thank you for your help last night. I'm Chelsea, what's your name?" Chelsea asked. Before the boy could reply, her parents had called her.

"Hurry up Chelsea!" her parents yelled in unison.

"Go on, you'd better hurry up or it would depart without you on board!" the boy replied as Chelsea boarded the ship. "Chelsea! I promise you that someday when we meet again, I would have become a great rancher like my dad!"

"What's your name?" Chelsea yelled.

"My name is..."

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Sorry the chapter's too short! I'll upload the next chapter in a few minutes! Please leave a review!


	2. Arrival of My Fellow Rancher

Hi again! And again I'm sorry this is yet another short chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon!

Enjoy!

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_**Harvest Moon – Fateful Encounter**_

_**Chapter 2 – Arrival of My Fellow Rancher**_

It was morning already and the sun's bright light filled the house of a brown haired rancher.

"Oh, it was just a dream..." the brown haired rancher, Chelsea, said as she rubbed her eyes and then stretched her arms and legs. "That boy... I wonder who his name is, I can't remember..." Chelsea paused for a while before she got up from her bed.

She just had some soup for breakfast as she was short on food supplies. Before she was going to take her rucksack and go to work, she heard a knock on the door.

"Excuse me, may I come in?"

Chelsea ran over to her door and opened it to reveal a blonde haired boy with a blue baseball cap about her age.

"Hi, my name is Mark. Are you Chelsea, the great rancher that people often talk about?" Mark asked as Chelsea nodded. "Well, nice to meet you. I'll be staying at the Island Hotel starting today, so I'll come by and help you out tomorrow morning. Sounds good enough for you?"

"I guess it's okay. I'll see you tomorrow!" Chelsea waved as Mark left the ranch. "Huh, that's funny. For a second I thought that he seems really familiar... Oh well, I can deal with it later! I'd better get back to work before it's noon!"

Chelsea entered her barn and started to brush her cow, Milky. When she was going to milk the cow, Milky's tail started to whip Chelsea's hand. When she was milking her, the cow kicked the bucket hard which made it fly and spill the milk on Chelsea. Milky walked away calmly and then stopped when Chelsea yelled at her.

"Milky, come here! I'm not done with you!" Chelsea yelled angrily as Milky continued walking and sat in the corner of the barn, staring at Chelsea. Seeing how her cow had acted, Chelsea became irritated and left the barn without feeding her cow.

After Chelsea had stepped outside the barn, she noticed that her clothes and bandana were covered in milk. "Okay, I really need to change!" she said before she ran back to her house.

After she had changed her clothes, she watered her plants on the field and shipped her crops. She went back to her house and started cooking for lunch.

"I think I'll make some curry rice for lunch today..." Chelsea prepared the ingredients and started to cook. After she was done with the cooking, she noticed that there were some ingredients left.

"Maybe I can give this to Mark for welcoming him to the island, then I can make some for myself with the remaining ingredients!" as she said that, her stomach growled. "On second thought, maybe he wouldn't mind if I eat this and make another one..." Chelsea ate the curry rice she just made and made another one.

After Chelsea was done, she put the curry rice in her rucksack and headed towards the Island Hotel. She knocked on Mark's door and waited for him to open the door.

"Oh, Chelsea! What brings you here?" Mark asked as Chelsea took out the curry rice and gave it to him. "For me? Thanks a lot!" he took the curry rice from Chelsea's hands. "Would you like to come in?"

"No thanks, I'm going to take a walk in the town while gathering some wild grasses for me to ship. Anyways, I'll see you tomorrow!" Chelsea waved as she walked out of the hotel.

Chelsea spent the rest of her day walking around the whole town. She picked up all kinds of wild grasses and put them in the nearest shipment box. After the sun was down, she decided to go to Diner to have something for dinner.

When she was waiting for her order, Mark came in. He noticed that Chelsea was sitting alone not too far from the entrance.

"Hi there, Chels! Are you done with your work yet?" Mark said as he approached her.

"Well, I think so... There aren't many things to ship today, but at least I have enough money to eat here. What about you? Are you here to eat too?" Chelsea asked.

"Yeah, I got hungry when I was unpacking my things." Mark scratched the back of his head while letting out a goofy smile. "Do you mind if I sit here?"

"Okay, no problem!" as Chelsea said it, Luke came to her table carrying her order.

"Here's your order!" Luke put the dish on the table as Chelsea thanked him.

"Aren't you going to order something then?" Chelsea asked.

"Ah, maybe later... I forgot to let my family know that I've made it safely to this island! Later Chels!" Mark said as he ran out of the Diner.

"Hmmm... what a weird guy..." Chelsea commented before she had her dinner.

After she was done, she paid for the dish and thanked Luke once more before going back home. She changed into her night gown and turned in for the night.

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The next chapter will come this weekend or next week, it depends on how busy I will be as tests will start this Friday. Please review!


	3. Lessons to Become a Rancher

I'm back! And yet still no review, sigh...

Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon!

Enjoy...

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_**Harvest Moon – Fateful Encounte**__**r**_

_**Chapter 3 – Lessons to Become a Rancher**_

As Chelsea woke up the next morning, she heard a knock on the door. She put on her bandana before opening the door to reveal Mark standing there, ready to go to work.

"Morning! Sorry if I wake you up!" Mark said as he smiled cheerfully. "I really can't wait to do some ranching stuff! So, what do we do first?"

"First of all, go and milk the cow while I change first! I know that this is my night ranch, but I can't go running around the ranch with my night gown!" Chelsea replied with an annoyed tone before she slammed the door on Mark's face.

"Wow, I think I've made her mad..." Mark said as he rubbed his face.

Meanwhile, Chelsea leaned against the door and closed her eyes before she sighed. She reopened her eyes as she remembered something from her dream.

'_That's weird... I feel like I know him for quite some time... Is it possible that Mark might be the boy from my dream last night?'_ Chelsea moved away a little from the door and stared at it as she suddenly heard Mark's whistling.

'_I'd better hurry up and finish my work while tutoring him...'_ Chelsea went into the bathroom and changed into her regular farming outfit.

Chelsea went out of her house and saw Mark with his blue cap in his hand. The wind blew his short blonde hair as he was looking at her field which was covered by ripe corn plants. The blonde didn't notice that the brown haired rancher had already been standing behind.

"I'm sure that I've told you to milk my cow instead of staring at my field!" Mark turned around to see Chelsea with her hands on her hips.

"C-Chels!" Mark jumped back in surprise, "I-I didn't see you there!"

"Okay, let's just forget about this now," Chelsea walked a few steps towards the barn, "The first thing to do now is to take care of your animals. We need to brush them every day to keep them happy." While Chelsea was explaining, Mark took some notes in his small notebook.

When they entered the barn, Chelsea noticed something after she saw her cow. Her cow, Milky, was giving her a death glare and she was still sitting in the corner just like how Chelsea left her the day before. She turned to the feeding boxes and saw that Milky's was empty.

"Um... Chels? What's up with your cow?" Mark asked. Chelsea suddenly shoved Mark out of the barn and closed the door quickly.

_Lesson one, don't forget to feed your animals!_

'_Oh, right... Milky spilled the milk by kicking the bucket yesterday, so I had to change and I had completely forgotten to feed her...'_ Chelsea turned to Milky again, who was still glaring at the brown haired rancher. _'It really was my fault, wasn't it?'_ Chelsea asked herself before she sighed and put some fodder in Milky's feeding box.

Meanwhile, Mark was looking at the corn plants on the field, again. He bent down to look at the plants closely. He examined the corns and the leaves, which didn't look as fresh as he expected them to be.

"Hm... I think they don't have enough water. Corn plants may be summer plants, but I think they need more water so the quality of corns produced would be better..." Mark commented before he left the field.

_Lesson two, water your plants properly!_

The barn door suddenly opened when Mark was going to take a look at the shipping box and Chelsea came out of the barn with a sigh. She noticed that Mark was still there and walked over to him.

"I'm going to the town to get some things to sell. If you want to learn anything else about ranching from me, come back here tomorrow. I'm not in the mood to talk anymore, so I'll see you later!" Chelsea waved goodbye while walking out from her ranch towards the town.

Mark just sighed in disappointment. "I always have bad luck when it comes to girls, do I?"

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Next chapter will be uploaded soon, I hope... Please leave a review!


	4. Stuck in the Rain

I'm back! And I'm glad that there are reviews this time!

Red: Thanks for the review, and guess what? I love Mark and Chelsea too! Chelsea is a real pain to court as well as getting her to the island, but I've already married her in the games. (Finally!) Anyways, here's the next chapter!

Gothbear100: Thanks! Haha... Well, there are many other names in the games other than them, but that's alright! Here's the next chapter.

Before we start with the story, the disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon characters!

Alright, on with the story!

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_**Harvest Moon – Fateful Encounter**_

_**Chapter 4 – Stuck in the Rain**_

Ever since Mark arrived, he had been visiting Chelsea almost every single day to learn more about ranching from her. Chelsea first thought of him as a bothersome, but as days passed he became more and more helpful.

It had been a whole season since Mark arrived in Sunny Island and it seemed as if Chelsea's ranch was actually taken care by both Mark and Chelsea. Mark could even manage her ranch while Chelsea was out gathering some wild grass from the town and the forest.

It seemed all so strange to her. At first, he was just an inexperienced rancher who always bothered her just to learn about how to ranch. He even made her work twice harder to cover his mistakes, but now it was the other way around.

He wasn't only helpful, but he was also a kind and gentle person. He was more than an apprentice to her, he was more like a friend. But probably more than just a friend.

His gentle smile had erased the fatigue after a day working in the ranch and her heart warmed up every time she saw him, but her face also felt a bit warmer. Yes, she was in love with the young blonde.

It was early in the morning, but Chelsea had woken up and was getting ready to work. She put on her bandana while humming cheerfully. After she went out through the door, she could saw the blonde rancher on the field, watering her almost fully grown bell pepper plants.

"Hi Chels! Good morning!" Mark greeted with a smile and Chelsea replied with another smile and a nervous wave.

"G-Good morning..." Chelsea could feel that her face started heating up. "How long have you been here?"

"Hm... maybe about an hour..." Mark replied, "I'm almost done with your work now, so why don't we take a day off today?"

"Uh... okay... Thanks for the help..." Chelsea tried to avoid eye contact with him without being suspected, but failed.

"What is it? Is there something on my face?" Mark asked densely, which made Chelsea slightly annoyed.

"No, nothing at all!" Chelsea turned away, "Let's just finish the rest of the work quickly so we can take a much longer day off!"

"Okay, sure thing!" Mark saluted, but was ignored by Chelsea.

A few hours had passed and the two of them finished their work on the ranch. It was supposed to be almost noon, but the weather was still cold and the sky was still a bit dark.

"Hey, don't you think it's a bit cloudy today?" Mark asked while looking at the dark and cloudy sky.

"Oh, now I remember! Grandpa Taro said that it was going to rain today!" Chelsea replied as it started raining suddenly. "Come on, let's take a shelter in my house!"

"Okay... Wait a minute! Is that okay with you?" Chelsea was about to run, but was stopped by Mark. Chelsea turned to the blonde, feeling annoyed.

"Will I let you in if I'm not okay with it?" Chelsea asked with an irritated tone. Mark was about to answer, but Chelsea cut him off, "Of course not, right? Now get those feet moving already!"

Mark nodded before the two of them ran from the middle of the field towards Chelsea's house. Mark had never expected that her house would be that big and yet so quiet.

"Wait here. I'll get you some dry towels," Chelsea walked towards the cupboard and took a couple of white towels. She threw one at Mark and used the other one to dry herself and her soaking wet hair.

Mark saw Chelsea took off her bandana, letting her long and wet brown hair sway back and forth. Mark could feel that his heart started beating faster and his face was getting warmer and warmer.

"What is it? I can tell that you've been staring at me for a moment there," Chelsea turned to Mark, feeling uneasy for being stared at.

"N-No, it's nothing!" Mark replied nervously, _'She's so pretty without her bandana...'_

"It looks like the rain won't stop really soon... How about you stay here until the rain stops?" Chelsea asked as she put her used towel down on a nearby chair.

"O-Okay... thanks..." Mark replied nervously. _'A single guy and a single girl ALONE in a very quiet house... I wonder if this is the Goddess' gift or a curse...'_

Mark pushed the thought away as Chelsea led him to the dining table and let Mark sat there while she was preparing some tea. Mark looked around her house, which had a simple design. The wooden wall and door were made from strong and good quality wood.

"Here's your tea," Chelsea put down the cup of tea down on the table before she sat down across him with her own teacup on her hand.

"This is such a nice house you have. How much does it cost anyway?" Mark started.

"I got it for free when I first came here. It was really small back then, so I decided to earn some money to get it upgraded," Chelsea replied before taking a sip of her tea.

"Oh, I see... I think your ranching business earns so much money that you can also make some changes in the island. I first heard that there's a great rancher here, so I came here to learn to become a rancher like my father," Mark explained.

Chelsea paused for a second. _'A son of a rancher, wasn't he? Could he be the one whose parents died in an accident a few years ago?'_

"I can't remember his face anymore... It really hurts me every time I remember him covered in blood at the scene where 'that' happened," Mark lowered his head and tightened his grip on his cup.

'_No way! He was the one! He was one of the siblings left by that rancher and his wife!'_ Chelsea realized something, but Mark had stood up before she could say anything to comfort him.

"Sorry, but I need to go now..." Mark quickly ran towards the door before Chelsea could chase after him.

"Mark... but I need to ask you something important..." Chelsea whispered quietly as she saw the shadow of Mark running out of her ranch despite of the rain.

'_I'm sorry Chels... but I can't let you see me cry...'_ Mark thought as he continued running towards the hotel.

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The next chapter will be up... some time after this that I don't really know when! (Hopefully soon...) Please leave a review!


	5. A Warm Winter

And another upload! Schedule's getting pretty tight now, but I guess I can manage...

Red: Hi again, and thanks for your review! I wrote this story 2 years ago and was finished last year, so I expected my English to be different from my current English, but I guess not too much. Speaking of Chelsea, I got the idea out of the blue and she's really cute if I think about it! And as a present for the review, here's the new chapter!

Alright, the disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon characters!

Enjoy!

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_**Harvest Moon – Fateful Encounter**_

_**Chapter 5 – A Warm Winter**_

It had been a season since the events with Mark and Chelsea. Mark rarely visited Chelsea to work during winter as there weren't many things to do. Although they rarely saw each other, their bonds had surprisingly deepened.

The two sometimes went out for a lunch or dinner together after working in the cold weather of winter season. They even sometimes played snowball fights in the mountain after lunch.

It was almost the end of the year, and the blonde young man with a blue cap was walking in the middle of the empty streets.

"Man, I'm so bored..." Mark complained, "There aren't many things to do in the ranch during winter..."

"Darn it! This is so heavy!" Mark turned to the direction where the irritated voice came from and saw a pink haired young woman trying to carry a big white sack. Mark ran over to her and offered to help.

"Let me carry the sack for you, Miss," Mark offered.

"Okay, thanks..." The young woman thanked him and handed him the white sack while her face remained expressionless, "Come, it's this way."

Mark put the white sack over his right shoulder and followed the young woman to a big wooden house. The two entered the wooden building and were greeted by a bald old man.

"Welcome back, Natalie! It seems like you needed someone else's help, after all..." The old man said.

"Shut up, Gramps! It's not my fault that I'm already tired after all that shipping you told me to gather this morning!" The young woman, Natalie, protested.

"Leaving that aside, can I ask who you are, young man?" The old man changed the subject and turned to Mark.

"My name is Mark, and I'm currently visiting this island to learn about ranching so that I can be a great rancher just like my father," Mark introduced himself as he bowed his head in respect.

"I'm Taro, and I was formerly a rancher during my younger days," Taro paused for a moment, "Wait, aren't you the one who often helps Chelsea with her ranch work?" Taro asked and Mark nodded, "I see... I've heard a lot about you from her."

"Really? She must've said that I screw up a lot, right?" Mark asked while rubbing the back of his head.

"No, you got it all wrong!" Taro exclaimed suddenly, surprising the blonde haired young man. "She always says how helpful you are and how you cover for her mistakes."

"Wow... I've never expected to have her say that..." Mark commented, and then turned to the door as it opened.

"Taro-san, have you seen Mark...?" Chelsea peeked in and Mark was the first person she saw, "Oh, there you are! Could you help me clean up the field?"

"Oh, okay! I'll come with you in a sec!" Mark replied to Chelsea before turning back to Taro, "I'll be going now, Sir!"

"Okay, don't push yourself too hard!" Taro replied and Mark left the building with Chelsea.

The two left the town and headed north towards Chelsea's ranch. Mark scanned the field, which was covered in snow, and saw that it was also full of rocks and branches.

"This is something I have to do before winter season ends. I had to clean up the field last year too..." Chelsea explained shortly and sighed.

"But you had to do everything by yourself last year, right?" Chelsea nodded, "Okay, I'll help you out from now on!"

"T-Thanks, Mark..." Chelsea thanked him nervously. Unsure about what to say next, Chelsea walked quietly towards her ranch field and started picking up the rocks and branches lying around.

Mark just shrugged before he went to help her clean up the field. He temporarily put the rocks and branches into the rucksack he was carrying to make them easier to carry. He turned to the brown haired rancher, hoping that he could learn anything else from her.

Just as he turned, Chelsea was also doing the same thing. They paused for a few seconds as their eyes made contact before they noticed what they were doing and quickly turned away.

'_Why is he looking at me? And why am I looking at him!?'_ Chelsea thought as she tried to prevent more embarrassing thoughts from coming to her brain. She sneaked another look at him, and she saw that his expression had changed.

Mark had a sad look on his face, unlike his usual passion for ranch work. This made the brown haired rancher worry, but she wasn't sure what to do to make him feel better. Although she was quite fond of him, she barely knew anything about him.

'_He had the same expression as when he talked to me about his father before. Does that mean he misses his father that much?'_ Chelsea questioned herself.

"Should we take a break now?" Mark's sudden question snapped her from her trains of thoughts, "You have been spacing out recently. Are you feeling alright?"

"I-I'm fine! Don't you think you're the one who has been spacing out recently?" Chelsea quickly replied, trying to cover herself.

"Oh, I see..." Mark quietly stated before he turned away, "I guess I can't keep my sadness hidden forever from a great rancher like you..." Mark turned back with a sad smile, "I can't stop thinking about my parents, especially my dad. He wasn't just a great rancher, but to the three of us, he was a hero."

"A... hero?" Chelsea asked.

"Yes, but not because he had saved my older brother," Mark could feel that his tears were pouring down from his face, "He was the inspiration for our future... He showed us how important ranch work is and how much fun it is. He was the one who got me inspired to come here..."

"Mark... I..." Chelsea couldn't think of the right words to comfort him, but he hugged her before she could think of anything.

"Thanks to him, I could come here and meet you again after a long time and become good friends with you... I won't ever forget this winter season..." Mark broke the hug and wiped his tears from his face while Chelsea was stunned from the sudden hug, "The usually cold winter has become warmer with you by my side..."

His words recovered her from her shock, but it made her blush. She swallowed to calm herself down as her blush faded away. She looked up at him right in the eyes and smiled.

"Yes, I feel the same too with you here..." Chelsea replied, but suddenly she remembered something from her past.

_**-Flashback-**_

_A young boy with yellow hair and baseball cap was waving at her as he ran after her moving ship._

"_What's your name?" Chelsea yelled._

"_My name is..."_

_**-End of Flashback-**_

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The next update can't be confirmed, but hopefully it'll be up soon! Please leave a review!


	6. A Misunderstanding

Finally! After being busy taking care of the olympics (and I have also forgot to upload this last Easter holiday), I can finally upload another chapter!

Red: The school's unpredictable. I thought that I was going to be busy with homework and other assignments, but it turned out that I had nothing but Chinese homework for the holiday (for science class in my school, it's a very rare event).

Now, the disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon characters!

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_**Harvest Moon – Fateful Encounter**_

_**Chapter 6 – A Misunderstanding**_

The weather was clear that day, the last day of the year. Mark and Chelsea were still standing in the middle of the field, neither of them spoke. The silent winter continued until they heard the sound of a bell from a place far away from there.

"That's the bell from the harbor..." Chelsea started as she and Mark turned to the direction where the bell's sound came from.

"Then it's time for us to go!" Mark pulled Chelsea's hand suddenly, but Chelsea held him back.

"Where?" The brown haired rancher was clueless.

"To see the Year End Festival at the beach together," Mark replied with a smile, but then turned into a frown, "Or... you don't want to?"

"N-No, that's not what I'm going to say..." Chelsea rubbed her right arm nervously, "It's just that... I haven't been out alone with a guy before, so I'm kind of nervous..."

"How about pretending that I'm not with you? Or I could disguise as another person..." Mark spoke out the idea bluntly, getting a playful hit on the shoulder.

"No, that's a bit too much I think..." Chelsea smiled at him, "I'll bear with it, so don't worry about it!"

"Alright then, let's head out!" Mark finally stated before they headed towards the beach.

Once they got to the beach, the whole area was bright from the paper lanterns. The festival wasn't all that grand, but it seemed like the islanders there were enjoying themselves. Near the port, Taro and Felicia had already prepared the special year end noodles.

The festival continued until almost midnight, as they all waited for the final countdown. The people were all by the sea, waiting for the year to change.

"5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Happy New Year!" everyone yelled.

After the countdown, they continued celebrating the new year for about an hour before they pack up and go back home to turn in for the night.

Several days had passed since then, and the islanders had returned to their daily lives. Mark was eager to help Chelsea out again as she got more ranch work in spring. She always expected Mark to knock on her door everyday on the same time, so one day without him coming on time made her somehow curious.

It was 7 in the morning, an hour after Mark's 'door knocking' routine. Chelsea was watering the plants on her own and she felt that she was more tired than when she was working with him. She decided to take a short break and went to the town. Once she got there, the first thing she saw was the sight of Mark and Natalie working together.

He only came for the first three days on that new year and he hadn't come over to help since then. Almost every time she came to the town, she saw that he was with either Natalie or her brother Elliot.

She first thought that it was just a friendly chat or maybe Natalie just needed his help, but as time goes by, she started thinking the other way. Natalie seemed to smile more often than usual, as if enjoying Mark's company as they worked together.

Chelsea started to feel that Mark actually liked working with Natalie better than with her, and Natalie seemed to like having him around her. Chelsea had always been managing her own ranch all by herself before Mark came to the island, but it had changed now. She needed him, not as a co-worker, but as a friend whom she could talk to and spend some time with.

Seeing as Mark and Natalie were enjoying each other's company, Chelsea slowly made her way back to her ranch to finish her work before resting for the rest of the day.

The next day, Chelsea was woken up by the sound of door knocking. After she had checked the time, she was sure of one thing. Mark was here. She expected him to say that he had finished doing something, but what she heard was different from what she had thought.

"Chels, I have a surprise for ya!" Mark eagerly said.

Chelsea was feeling irritated, but she walked over to the door and leaned on it.

"What is it?" Chelsea plainly asked.

"Well... it's hard to speak about it when you're inside and I'm outside. Could you let me in?" Mark waited for a reply, but silence was the only thing he got. "Please?"

"Go away," Chelsea replied coldly, "I'm not in the mood to talk at all and I don't need your help anymore."

Mark was shocked to hear that from her, but he didn't know what he did wrong and how he should make it up to her. He decided to turn away from the door rather than to say anything else that might worsen her mood.

"Okay, I'll leave. Just don't push yourself too hard and collapsed, you hear?" Mark sadly said before he left the ranch.

On the other side of the door, Chelsea could feel that her feeling of anger and sadness mixed up together. She didn't feel that she had the heart to say such things to him, but she actually did. She had said it and she had torn his heart badly.

She couldn't do anything else to stop him from going as she was unsure of what to say to him. She sighed in desperation and decided to do the ranch work for the day to keep her mind off the mistake she had just done.

Meanwhile, Mark was walking back towards the hotel while sadly looking at the ground. He was carrying his rucksack in front of him instead of carrying it on his back.

'_Did I do something wrong to her? She usually talks to me when she has some problem, but why doesn't she talk to me like before?'_ Mark asked himself, before he stopped walking suddenly, _'Is it because it was a private matter that she needed to solve on her own?'_ Mark paused for a second before he sighed and continued walking towards East Town, where the hotel was.

'_Maybe I'll give her the feather later then... Later when she's in a better mood...'_ Mark went into the hotel and walked straight to his room.

Mark threw his rucksack to the side of his bed before lying down on the bed. He tried drifting off to sleep, still feeling sad and confused at the same time.

'_Chelsea... It's been a long time since I saw you, and I never know if this is the real you or not... My father could tell that you'd become a great rancher someday when we first saw you, so I want you to teach me so I can be your equal and even surpass my father...'_ Mark sadly thought before he finally went to sleep.

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The last, the final chapter will be up... some time soon! Sorry, but I can't really say when because school assignments have become quite unpredictable. I'll make sure to upload the final chapter when I have time and when I remember to do it! Please review!


	7. The Truth

Finally...! Here it is...! The final chapter of Fateful Encounter...!

You're Jinx: Thanks! And here's the final chapter...!

The final disclaimer I'm going to type in this story: I still, don't own Harvest Moon!

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_**Harvest Moon – Fateful Encounter**_

_**Chapter 7 – The Truth**_

Two weeks had passed since Mark last saw Chelsea. Chelsea managed to do all her ranch work again as if Mark never helped her before. Meanwhile, Mark had many strange nightmares about Chelsea ever since that day which made him unable to sleep at all for the last few days.

"I hate you, Mark! You're so careless and useless!"

"Chels!" Mark got up from his hotel bed suddenly as Chelsea's voice from his dream was still echoing in his head.

The blonde looked around and saw that he was still in his hotel room, alone. His body was wet from the cold sweat and his breathing was short and fast. He took a deep long breath to calm himself down.

'_Another nightmare, huh?'_ Mark felt a bit calmer than before, but his face didn't seem too happy, _'Or did that really happen?'_ Mark sighed, _'I really feel like I couldn't tell between nightmares and reality anymore...'_

Mark slowly got off the bed and took a shower. As soon as he finished getting dressed, he sat back down on his bed and sighed.

'_What did I do to make her hate me that much? Was it because of something I had said? Or was it because of something I did?'_ Mark sat still on his bed for a few minutes until he turned to the desk, where his rucksack was placed.

'_I haven't given it to her yet... but I don't think she would accept something like that from me...'_ Mark walked over to the desk and opened his rucksack just to stare at the items inside, until he closed it back.

'_No, I won't know whether she would accept it or not if I don't try!'_ Mark took his rucksack and carried it on his back as he left the hotel room.

As soon as he got out of the hotel, the feeling of cold air conditioned room was replaced by the intense heat of the sun.

"It's seriously hot out here!" Mark complained as sweat started pouring down from his face, "How come the weather in spring is almost as hot as in summer!?"

Mark tried ignoring the heat and continued walking, but his head started spinning and his vision became a blur all of the sudden. His body became too unstable even just to stand still, not able to sustain the heat. He tripped on a rock and fell to the hard and hot ground with a loud thud.

Just a few meters from there, a pink haired figure happened to pass by and saw him lying there.

"Mark, what happened to you? Hang in there!" The figure left him for a few seconds to get some help.

"Mark, hang in there!" The helper came, and that familiar feminine voice was the last thing he heard before he completely blacked out.

It had been an hour since Mark passed out. He was taken to Chelsea's house and he was still resting on her extra bed. Meanwhile, Chelsea was in the living room, talking to Natalie.

"I see... So you don't know why he suddenly passed out either..." Chelsea said before she took a sip of her tea.

"Yeah, and sorry for the trouble. I don't have any extra beds for him to stay," Natalie replied apologetically.

"It's okay..." Chelsea replied shortly with a smile before she showed a serious face, "But before you go, I want to ask you about something."

"What is it?" The pink haired young woman asked.

"It's something about you and Mark actually. Do you actually know him?" Chelsea asked curiously.

"Well, I don't know him that much... But I believe that gramps know him a little. His father used to be gramps' apprentice," Natalie answered.

"No wonder you get along well with him in quite a short time. You two have something in common after all..." Chelsea replied, trying to hide her feeling of jealousy.

"But I feel a bit out of place, actually... He often asks me about you and your ranch, but rarely asks about my gramps..." Natalie let out a sigh as she felt not respected by Mark.

"Oh, okay. Thanks for being honest with me," Chelsea said with a relieved smiled.

"I'd better go back to work now. I'll see you later," Natalie rose from her seat and headed towards the door while Chelsea was sitting still on her seat.

After the door had closed, Chelsea slowly turned to Mark, who was still resting. She walked over to him to see him still fast asleep on the bed. She turned to the bedside table where she had put his rucksack and saw a blue thing sticking out from it. Curious, she opened the rucksack and found something that made her gasp in surprise.

"Mark... Is that what you wanted to give me back then?" Chelsea whispered quietly that she could barely even hear her own words. She turned to Mark for a quick glance, and turned back to the feather inside the rucksack. She took it out carefully, not believing that the feather was real.

"You know that it's impolite to look into other people's bags without the owner's permission, right?" Chelsea was surprised to hear the voice and she quickly hid the feather behind her back before she turned to the direction where the voice came from.

"Mark! You're awake!" Chelsea exclaimed loudly as Mark got off the bed slowly.

"Where are we?" Mark asked.

"We're in my house. Natalie found you passed out in the middle of the town and asked for my help, so that's why you're here," Chelsea explained the situation.

"Oh..." Mark shortly replied. He stood up and turned to her. He noticed that her face gave him the hint that she was hiding something. "I believe you're holding something from my rucksack, is that correct?"

"Uh... well... I was kind of suspicious, so I kind of looked inside..." Chelsea was at guilt and showed him what she was hiding behind her back.

"The feather..." Mark had a shocked look on his face and started to panic, "Chels, I can explain..."

"No need to, I think I understand what you were going to do two weeks ago..." Chelsea said with a smile.

"O-Oh... B-But if you don't want it, I'm fine with it! I know that you're busy with ranching stuff and..." Mark was in total panic and Chelsea giggled at him babbling on and on before she finally stopped him by putting a finger over his lips.

"Don't be silly, of course I want to be with you!" Chelsea smiled at him once more before she removed her finger from his lips.

"EH!?" Mark was stunned, but quickly recovered from the shock, "W-Well then... before I forget, I want to tell you something..."

"What is it about?" Chelsea asked.

"It's about the past, so I'm not sure if you still remember," Mark took a deep breath before continuing, "We met a long time ago in a small town called Mineral Town and I helped you find your parents when you got lost. The next day, you and your parents left in a ship and my father told me that he could tell that you had the qualities to become a rancher and that I should learn from you to become as good as him..."

Mark took another deep breath after the fast explanation, "Finally... I came here and didn't expect to see you here, but I'm not surprised to hear you becoming such a great rancher. My father's also a psychic so he could predict someone's future," Mark was panting due to the long and fast explanation, "Okay... that's all I guess..."

"I-I'm not sure what to say, Mark..." Chelsea's face turned red, "T-Thanks for the compliment, but I don't think I'm all that great just yet..." Chelsea suddenly noticed something, "Wait, that meeting years ago... Are you telling me that you're that boy in beach when I was leaving with my parents?"

"Yeah..." Mark replied shortly, "So, about the feather... Will you... accept it?"

Chelsea blushed and smiled before stepping closer to Mark, "Here's my answer..." She gave him a quick peck on the lips.

"As for the wedding, does next week sound okay to you?" Chelsea asked, getting a slow nod from the shocked blonde.

"Y-Yeah... I-I'll be going now..." Mark took his rucksack back and slowly made his way towards the door.

Chelsea suddenly realized what she had done and her face started turning red again, _'J-Just what did I do!?'_

Meanwhile, Mark was walking back towards the hotel. He felt that he couldn't stop smiling after he had proposed her, remembering the fact that she had also kissed him. He walked into his room and lied down on the bed.

'_I'm getting married!'_ Mark thought happily.

* * *

There it is! The very last chapter of Fateful Encounter! This story is short compared to my other stories, I know, but the length of a story doesn't completely determine the quality of a story, right? Thanks for your support everyone! Love you all! And for the last time in this story, I'll say: Please review!


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